Watch Colin Cowherd count down his rankings of the top 10 NBA players facing the most pressure this postseason.
Here are the rankings as follows:
1. Joel Embiid
“Okay, dude, if you want the MVP and you just had your best year, you gotta win a second playoff series.He's never advanced past the second round. The Bucks are aging, and the Celtics’ center Robert Williams is hit-and-miss on health. Maxey has become a good player, Harden led the league in assists, it's your time. You gotta win two playoff series minimum.”
2. Jayson Tatum
“Listen, there's rumors if they get bounced before the Finals they're moving off Jaylen Brown. Dude, no more passive in crisis. last year he led the NBA playoffs in scoring but it felt like he wilted in the Finals. He's more rested this season, this is structurally as good as any team in the league. They have got to get to the Finals. May not have to win it but they've got to get there.”
3. Anthony Davis
“LeBron is old, this has to be your team. Especially against Memphis without two of their front court guys. They have Ja Morant, they've got wings, Dylan Brooks, their bigs are all banged up so you have got to dominate this series. Jaren Jackson gets into foul trouble, he likes fouling. You got to get to the line, you gotta hit your free throws. You can't depend on LeBron, or Austin Reaves, or Dennis Schroeder. Anthony Davis this is your series.”
4. Nikola Jokic
“Back-to-back MVP, last year a gentlemen’s sweep first round, come on. Listen, I have defended the guy but at some point it's got to be more than efficiency if you're going to be MVP. You gotta be able to compete in April, May, and June.”
5. James Harden
“Legacy on the line. Struggled in the playoffs last year. What is he now? Is he going to go down as just a talented flake? Because now he's got the MVP at center, Maxey has become a great running mate, he's got a head coach that won a championship. He led the league in assists the only thing missing is some playoff success.”
6. Ja Morant
“They should beat the Lakers. They're deeper, they're younger, why wouldn't they beat the Lakers? If they lose my gut feeling is we will point to Ja Morant eight game suspension— the star of the franchise going sideways, not mature enough to handle it.”
7. Kawhi Leonard
“They've reached one conference Finals. He was going to be the answer, right? Won a title in San Antonio, won a title in Toronto, then the Clippers decided ‘we're going to build around Kawhi Leonard.’ He’s not available. Paul George is out, but Klay Thompson was coming off an injury last year, the Warriors still won a Final. That's the brakes, nobody cares. You've got to get to the Conference Finals."
8. Chris Paul
“Listen, he's not the scorer he once was, he had a career-low 14 points a game, but now that he's got Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and DeAndre Ayton this is the best starting five he's had. They can't be a one-and-done or a two-and-done, they have to get minimum to the Conference Finals. You know I love Chris, but this is the best supporting cast of his career.”
9. Russell Westbrook
“Five different teams in five years, is he just gonna end his career as the toxic player that can't play with anybody now? They've been about . 500 since he arrived, he is productive, and I think he wanted to stay in Los Angeles, his family's here, so this is a big deal for Russell Westbrook. Can he be a functional player, maybe at times off the bench, a role player who gives you great energy in spots but you don't trust situationally. It's a big deal for him, you don't want to end just bouncing around the league when you're a Hall of Famer.”
10. Kevin Durant
“His legacy right now, fair or not, is tied overwhelmingly to the Warriors and Steph Curry. I think Kevin's one of the best players I've ever seen but he's only got one Conference Finals appearance with the Thunder and the Nets, so I do think elevating a Phoenix Suns franchise which had to change owners, Chris Paul's having his lowest scoring year, Monty Williams and Ayton a year ago didn't get along… I think there's a little pressure on Kevin to prove that ‘hey, I can take a franchise with things that aren't necessarily perfect, we don't have a great bench, Chris Paul's at the end, and I can take us to the Finals.’”
Check out the FULL segment above.
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